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Zobrist continues to settle in at shortstop

Zobrist continues to settle in at shortstop

SEATTLE -- Ben Zobrist started at shortstop Tuesday night, his fifth start in six games at the position he played when he arrived to the Major Leagues with the Rays in 2006.

From what the Rays are saying -- and what their actions have said -- Zobrist is looking more and more like the team's everyday shortstop, which is fine with Zobrist.

"It's one of my favorite positions for sure," Zobrist said. "If it was permanent, I would love it. If it's for a period of time, I'm fine with that too. Whatever works best for the team's probably going to work out what's best for me, probably, in the end."

Zobrist said manager Joe Maddon and the coaching staff have asked him how comfortable he would be playing either of the corner infield positions.

"I said, 'To be honest, I'm not very comfortable at the corners,'" Zobrist said. "You know, it takes more reps than I've had there to get comfortable. But shortstop is a little different, because I've had a ton of reps in the past at shortstop."

Zobrist was asked if making a return to shortstop was like riding a bicycle, something one never forgets.

"I think, for the most part, I'm comfortable. [Making] the turn, I'm not totally comfortable with," Zobrist said. "It feels a little weird, because I haven't done it too much yet. And I'm trying to play [the position] a little bit more like I started playing second base back in 2009, which is different than I played shortstop before.

"Before it was more like: Get in front of the ball. Set your feet. Make a strong throw. The way I played second, if it's a play that I have to charge or range, I'm pretty much throwing on the run. So that's the way I'm trying to play shortstop as well, rather than trying to set my feet on every throw. I think it might help me get to a few more ball than I did back in 2006 through 2008. It's a little different."